False Alarm
by Seyyan
Summary: Tohru experiences something strange, and her Zodiac housemates are very much alarmed by this. They call on the Zodiac doctor to check up on her. Is this something terrible, or just a big mistake?


False Alarm

Humming to herself, Tohru was in the sink, washing the dishes. Everyone else was busy with other things: Kyo, with his homework, Yuki, with his gardening, and Shigure, with his new book—or so he says. "Everything is perfectly normal," Tohru whispered to herself as she sighed.

Not that she was complaining. In fact, she loved doing household chores. "Especially, washing the dishes," she said out loud, not realizing that she did so.

"What was that, Tohru-kun? Were you saying something?" Tohru turned around to see a smiling Shigure, peeking from his study.

"Um, er, nothing, Shigure-san. Is there anything you want? Tohru stammered and blushed. By the time she finished talking, Shigure was back inside, busily scribbling down his new novel. _Whew, that was awkward._, she thought. _I seem to forget that I am already voicing out my thoughts. I am such an idiot!_ She mentally knocked her head and resumed her task of washing the dishes. A little later, she was humming to herself again.

It must've been the soap bubbles. After all, they were so sparkly, that Tohru found herself mesmerized by it. Or maybe, it was because she was hungry. After her part time job, Tohru never really finds the time to eat. _It feels so sad to eat alone._ Anyway, whatever the reason was, it still happened.

_I just love washing the dishes! I almost feel like I'm meditating. It's so soothing._ Out of the blue, Tohru's mind imagined a small child running towards her, holding its arms up for an embrace._ My child._ Instantly, Tohru blinked her eyes several times. _That's funny. Where did that come from? _Tohru turned around and put her finger under her chin. She closed her eyes for a moment. _Might as well try to see 'my husband'._ Nothing happened. _That's strange. I see my child, yet…no husband?_

Coincidentally, Kyo chose this moment to pass by the kitchen doorway. Briefly glancing at Tohru, he continued walking towards the bathroom. Suddenly, he felt a sudden urge to retrace his steps back to the kitchen doorway. _Huh, _he thought, _why does her face have an absent look? She even forgot that she was holding a sponge!_ Kyo sauntered inside the kitchen, but Tohru did not seem to notice him.

Tohru was brought back to reality when she heard someone snap fingers. "Eh?"

"Oi, what's the matter? Why do you look as if you saw a ghost?" Kyo asked her. She didn't reply. His eyes widened. "Don't tell me you _did_ see a ghost!"

_A ghost?_ "Ah, ano, Kyo-kun, sumimasen. Iie, it was nothing. Just a…hallucination, I think."

"Hallucination?!", Kyo sputtered. "Do you want to see a doctor or something? Wait, I'll call Hatori."

Yuki overheard the last part of the conversation as he entered the kitchen. "Honda-san, are you not feeling well? You shouldn't overwork yourself. Do you want me to call Hatori-san?" Yuki was worried about her.

Kyo bristled at Yuki. "Hey, wait a minute! I was the first one to offer to call Hatori!"

"Baka neko, I'll call him"

"Eh?" Tohru stared at them and sighed. _Here we go again…_

"Kuzo nezumi, I was the first one here! I'm the one who will call Hatori!"

"No, you won't, 'cause I will. I'm the one closer to the door."

"No! I will! I'll beat you there!"

"No, you won't!"

"A, ano, Kyo-kun, Sohma-kun," Tohru stammered. "You don't need to call Hatori-san. I feel fine. See?" Tohru gave them a big goofy smile.

"What's this I hear? Tohru-kun, sick?" Shigure suddenly appeared inside the kitchen. "My, we have to call Ha-san. Kyo, get him on the phone!"

_When did he get here? _Both boys wondered.

"Kyo-kun!"

"Fine! I'm going to the phone!" _Man, that dog sure is lazy! Won't even call Hatori himself! I mean, he's the one nearest to the phone! _Kyo scowled at his thoughts. _Well, not that I don't want to call Hatori for her. I mean, I'll do anything for her._ At that thought, Kyo blushed.

Shigure saw the blush and teased. "What? Kyo-kun's sick too? Waah, this is a crisis!"

"Baka inu! I'm not sick," Kyo snapped at Shigure, although his face became redder.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

"Well?" An impatient Kyo asked Hatori., who was finishing Tohru's check-up. "Is she sick?"

Everyone was in Tohru's room. Tohru was lying in her bed, while Hatori sat beside her, talking her blood pressure, just doing a routine check-up. Yuki and Kyo were farther from the bed, but their eyes showed that they would rather be sitting beside her. Shigure was standing at the doorway, his right arm leaning at the frame, while his left arm was bent at his waist His eyes also showed concern for Tohru, and his lips were curled into a slight frown.

Hatori frowned at Kyo. _My, my. So impatient._ "Hmm," was all Hatori said.

"What does 'hmm' mean? Hatori-san," asked Yuki. He was desperately trying to be patient. _The suspense is killing me!_

"Well," Hatori said finally, "she's not sick. You shouldn't have dragged me here in the middle of the night."

"Baka neko, it's all your fault," growled an irate Yuki.

"Ah, ano, Kyo-kun, Sohma-kun, Shigure-san, I'm fine. I'm not sick, see?" Tohru gave a big smile as she hurriedly tried to smooth things up. "Ano, sumimasen, Hatori-san. We shouldn't have disturbed you." Tohru apologized profusely to the doctor.

Everyone seemed to feel relieved, except Kyo. "Idiot! You said you were having hallucinations! Isn't that a sickness of some sort?"

"Hallucinations? You were having hallucinations, Tohru?", asked Hatori. "Hmm, that is a different matter. I'm afraid it's not a part of my field of expertise. I may have to refer you to another doctor."

"Ah, iie, I-I'm perfectly fine," stammered a panicked Tohru, while shaking her head and waving her hands in front of her face. "I'm perfectly fine. I can't have another person waste his time on silly little me. I'm sure it won't happen again. Sumimasen again, Hatori-san!"

"Well, then," Hatori proclaimed as he stood up, "I'll be leaving now. If you do not feel fine, Tohru, do not hesitate to call me."

"Hai! Arigatou gozaimasu, Hatori-san!" Tohru gave Hatori one of her beaming smiles as she watched him leave.

Hatori walked out of the room and went downstairs to Shigure's study. "Shigure, I want to talk to you."

Shigure looked up from his work and smiled. "Ah, Ha-san. Thank you for coming here, even though it was a false alarm. We were all very worried for her. Anyway, how are things going in the Main House?"

Hatori sat down on the cushion at the other side of the desk. He lit a cigarette and watched the smoke curl in the air. "Well, things are normal." _Normal? Is Akito's fits of fury normal? _ Hatori took another puff at his cigarette. "Shigure, I want to talk to you about Tohru. She's overexerting herself. You shouldn't let her do all the work in your house. She's just a young girl. She deserves a break, too."

Shigure closed his eyes. "Yes, I guess we could help around. It's just that, she seemed so strong always that we forget she's also human. We certainly don't want to lose our flower now." Shigure opened his eyes and smiled, a roguish twinkle in his eyes. "Ne, Ha-san, I'm surprised you came here quickly." He gasped theatrically. "Ah, you have fallen in love with our dear flower! Well, it cannot be avoided. Tohru-kun is such an attractive girl. And so skilled in the wifely arts…"Shigure winked at the retreating Hatori.

_Stupid dog!_ Sometime during Shigure's mindless ramblings, Hatori extinguished his cigarette, stood up, and left the room to walk to his car. Taking one last glance at the house, he sat down and turned on the engine of the car. _Shigure, you are lucky to live freely, away from Akito's clutches. Take care and take care of her. She's special,_ Hatori thought, as he drove away.


End file.
